Palestinians accuse Microsoft of unfairly closing their accounts

Palestinians living abroad have accused Microsoft of shutting down their email accounts without warning, depriving them of essential online services.

They say it has blocked them from accessing their bank accounts and job offers – and prevented them from using Microsoft-owned Skype to contact relatives in the war-torn Gaza Strip.

Microsoft claims it violated its terms of service, a claim it disputes.

“They killed my online life,” said Eiad Hametto, who lives in Saudi Arabia.

“They suspended my email account that I had for almost 20 years. It was linked to all my work,” he told the BBC.

He also said being cut off from Skype had been a blow to his family.

The internet is frequently interrupted or cut off due to the Israeli military campaign – and standard international calls are very expensive.

Israel launched its Gaza offensive in response to the October 7 Hamas attack, which left about 1,200 people dead. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says more than 38,000 people have been killed in the war.

With a paid Skype subscription, it is possible to call mobile phones in Gaza cheaply – even when the internet is cut off – the service has become a lifeline for many Palestinians.

Some of those interviewed by the BBC said they wrongly suspected they had links to Hamas, which Israel fights and is considered a terrorist organisation by many countries.

But Mr Hametto denied having any such links.

“We are civilians with no political experience who simply wanted to hear from our families,” he said.

Microsoft did not respond directly when asked whether alleged links to Hamas were the reason for the accounts being closed.

But a spokesperson said it does not block calls or ban users based on region or call destination.

“The blocking on Skype may occur in response to suspected fraudulent activity,” they said, without elaborating.

Salah Elsadi, who lives in the US, also told the BBC that in April he was kicked out of his account – and all services linked to his Microsoft Hotmail account.

“I’ve had this Hotmail for 15 years,” Mr Elsadi told the BBC.

“They banned me for no reason, saying I violated their terms. What terms? Tell me.

“I filled out about 50 forms and called them many times.”

Another Palestinian the BBC spoke to, Khalid Obaied, said he no longer trusted Microsoft.

“I paid a flat rate to make phone calls, then after 10 days they banned me for no reason,” he said.

“This means that it is only because I am a Palestinian that I call Gaza.”